The Suzuki GS series was Suzuki Motor Corporation’s first full range of 4-stroke powered road motorcycles, having previously almost exclusively manufactured 2-stroke machines. Suzuki had produced the 4-stroke Colleda COX 125cc and 93cc 4-stroke single-cylinder machines in 1955 however the rest of Suzuki’s production from 1952 to 1976 had been increasingly sophisticated two-strokes, whose ultimate expression was the 750cc 3-cylinder water-cooled GT750.

The first of the GS Series was the four-cylinder GS750 released alongside the GS400 parallel twin in November 1976. (1977 Model Year). The GS750 engine was essentially patterned off the Kawasaki Z1-900, and became the design basis for all air-cooled Suzuki four-stroke fours until the release of the GSX-R. The GS750 engine was fitted into a dual cradle frame with telescopic forks, twin rear shocks and a front disc brake. The new GS750 was lauded for its handling at the time of its release, which was a significant improvement over its Japanese contemporaries, the older Honda CB750, the shaft-driven Yamaha XS750, and the more powerful but wayward handling Kawasaki 900.

The GS range was expanded in subsequent model years with a smaller 550cc four-cylinder GS550 and larger GS1000 added in 1977 with the range ultimately including 125cc single cylinder machines the GS125 and larger retro-styled machines such as the GS1200SS.

The good handling chassis and reliable, over-engineered engines made the four cylinder GS bikes ideal platforms for motorcycle road racing, with the GS1000 tuned by Pops Yoshimura winning the 1978 Daytona Superbike race, the 1978 Suzuka 8 Hours in Japan, and the AMA Superbike national championship in 1979 and 1980 with rider Wes Cooley. The bike won the Australian Castrol Six Hour race in 1979. In Europe, Yoshimura GS1000-powered Formula 1 bikes won the Formula TT World Championship ridden by Graeme Crosby in 1980 and 1981.

Developments GS to GSX
The original GS designs share common engine design elements of air-cooling, roller bearing crankshafts, two-valves per cylinder and double overhead camshafts (DOHC) operating directly on shim and bucket tappets. In 1980 the first major upgrading of the 750cc and 1000cc machines with 16-valve (four valves per cylinder) heads with the valves being actuated though short forked rockers, and the enlargement of the litre bike to 1100cc (actually 1074cc). The new heads incorporated Suzuki’s Twin Swirl Combustion Chamber (TSCC) technology and machines sporting the new technology were designated as GSX models in Japan, Europe, Africa, Australia, New Zealand, and many other markets, differentiating them from their two-valve per cylinder stable mates. In the Americas the GS code continued to be used for both four and two valve per cylinder machines. The 750 engine also received a plain bearing crankshaft and higher geared oil pump to increase oil pressure to the crank. The 8-valve 650cc engine also got plain bearing and marked the transition from two-stoke origins of the design and facilitated the move to air-oil cooling.

The introduction of air-oil cooling via large radiators known as SACS in the road-going Suzuki motorcycle demarcated the GS/GSX machines from the new technology of the GSX-R machines, however this distinction is blurred somewhat by later models such as the GS1200SS which used the SACS equipped GSF1200 Bandit engine.

Universal Japanese Motorcycle
During the 1970s and early 1980s the GS-range of models and contemporary machines from other Japanese manufactures shared so many common design configurations and features that this commonality of design gained the moniker the Universal Japanese motorcycle (UJM). The universality of design wasn’t that surprising as the GS and its contemporaries were designed as ‘general purposes motorcycles’ capable of sport riding, touring and commuting. It wasn’t until the further development of more purpose specialized machines, beginning in the GS range with the shaft-drive models for touring and the more sports-oriented GS1000S and GS/GSX1100 Katana models and later fully faired touring machines and race-replicas.

The range of motorcycles in the series had engine displacements between 125 cc and 1150 cc, and include the GS400 and GS500. The GS series also include the original Katana series, although both the 1000 and the 1100 had 16 valves, thus being a GSX. It was however still designated as a GS on some markets, primarily in the US.

In 1909, Michio Suzuki (1887–1982) founded the Suzuki Loom Works in the small seacoast village of Hamamatsu, Japan. Business boomed as Suzuki built weaving looms for Japan’s giant silk industry. In 1929, Michio Suzuki invented a new type of weaving machine, which was exported overseas. The company’s first 30 years focused on the development and production of these machines.

Despite the success of his looms, Suzuki believed that his company would benefit from diversification and he began to look at other products. Based on consumer demand, he decided that building a small car would be the most practical new venture. The project began in 1937, and within two years Suzuki had completed several compact prototype cars. These first Suzuki motor vehicles were powered by a then-innovative, liquid-cooled, four-stroke, four-cylinder engine. It had a cast aluminum crankcase and gearbox and generated 13 horsepower (9.7 kW) from a displacement of less than 800cc.

With the onset of World War II, production plans for Suzuki’s new vehicles were halted when the government declared civilian passenger cars a “non-essential commodity.” At the conclusion of the war, Suzuki went back to producing looms. Loom production was given a boost when the U.S. government approved the shipping of cotton to Japan. Suzuki’s fortunes brightened as orders began to increase from domestic textile manufacturers. But the joy was short-lived as the cotton market collapsed in 1951.

Faced with this colossal challenge, Suzuki’s returned to the production of motor vehicles. After the war, the Japanese had a great need for affordable, reliable personal transportation. A number of firms began offering “clip-on” gas-powered engines that could be attached to the typical bicycle. Suzuki’s first two-wheeled vehicle was a bicycle fitted with a motor called, the “Power Free.” Designed to be inexpensive and simple to build and maintain, the 1952 Power Free had a 36 cc, one horsepower, two-stroke engine.

The new double-sprocket gear system enabled the rider to either pedal with the engine assisting, pedal without engine assist, or simply disconnect the pedals and run on engine power alone. The patent office of the new democratic government granted Suzuki a financial subsidy to continue research in motorcycle engineering.

By 1954, Suzuki was producing 6,000 motorcycles per month and had officially changed its name to Suzuki Motor Co., Ltd. Following the success of its first motorcycles, Suzuki created an even more successful automobile: the 1955 Suzuki Suzulight. The Suzulight sold with front-wheel drive, four-wheel independent suspension and rack-and-pinion steering, which were not common on cars until three decades later.

Volkswagen AG completed the purchase of 19.9% of Suzuki Motor Corporation’s issued shares on 15 January 2010, Volkswagen AG is the biggest shareholder in Suzuki.

Leadership

The company was founded by Michio Suzuki; its current Chairman and CEO is Osamu Suzuki. the fourth mukoyōshi in a row to run the company.

Timeline

The Suzuki Loom Company started in 1909 as a manufacturer of looms for weaving silk and cotton. Michio Suzuki was intent on making better, more user-friendly looms and, for 30 years his focus was on the development of these machines. Michio’s desire to diversify into automotive products was interrupted by World War II. Before it began building four-stroke engines, Suzuki Motor Corp. was known for its two-stroke engines (for motorcycles and autos).

After the war, Suzuki made a two-stroke motorized bicycle, but eventually the company would be known for Hayabusa and GSX-R motorcycles, for the QuadRunner, and for dominating racetracks around the world. Even after producing its first car in 1955 the company didn’t have an automobile division until 1961. Today Suzuki is among the world’s largest automakers, and a major brand name in important markets, including Japan and India, but no longer sells cars in North America.

In 2011, Suzuki was thought to be the tenth biggest automaker by production worldwide. Suzuki has over 45,000 employees worldwide and has about 35 main production facilities in 23 countries and 133 distributors in 192 countries.